cock

Banbury story of a cock and a bull

A story that does not make sense or which rambles circuitously without apparent end. The old sailor, after several glasses of whiskey too many, began to tell some Banbury story of a cock and a bull, which none of us were able to decipher.

be cocksure of (oneself)

cock in the henhouse

The only male in an all-female environment. Getting a male teacher is a big deal when you go to an all-girls school! Finally, a cock in the henhouse!My grandpa always complains that he's a cock in the henhouse living here with my grandma, my mom, and my twin sister.

cock-and-bull story

A wildly exaggerated or falsified story or explanation. When I questioned Wendy about her recent tardiness, she gave me some cock-and-bull story about how her train took the wrong track and she had to hitchhike to work from the station across town.

live like fighting cocks

To lead an extravagant life. Fighting cocks were typically well-fed, so as to increase their chances of success in a cock fight. A: "Did Tom and Stephanie really buy a mansion?" B: "Yes, and they've been living like fighting cocks ever since Tom inherited all that money."

go off

go off half-cocked

Fig. to go into action too early or without thinking. (Originally refers to a flintlock or matchlock gun firing prematurely, before the trigger was pulled.) Don't go off half-cocked. Plan out what you're going to do.Bill went off half-cocked and told everybody he was running for the state legislature.

cock a snook

(British old-fashioned)

to show that you do not respect something or someone by doing something that insults them (usually + at ) In the end he refused to accept his award, cocking a snook at the film industry for which he had such contempt.

a cock-and-bull story

go off at half-cock

(old-fashioned) alsogo off half-cocked (old-fashioned)

to suddenly give your opinion without preparing what you are saying or understanding the subject you are talking about, often because you are angry You don't listen. You just go off at half-cock without even hearing the end of my sentence.

cock and bull story

An unbelievable tale that is intended to deceive; a tall tale. For example, Jack told us some cock and bull story about getting lost. This expression may come from a folk tale involving these two animals, or from the name of an English inn where travelers told such tales. W.S. Gilbert used it in The Yeomen of the Guard (1888), where Jack Point and Wilfred the Jailer make up a story about the hero's fictitious death: "Tell a tale of cock and bull, Of convincing detail full." [c. 1600]

cock a snook

Thumb one's nose, as in As soon as the teacher turned her back, the boys cocked a snook at her. This expression was first recorded in 1791 and the precise source of snook, here used in the sense of "a derisive gesture," has been lost. It is more widely used in Britain but is not unknown in America.

cock of the walk

A conceited, bossy person, as in Since his last promotion he's been acting like the cock of the walk-he's unbearable. This expression alludes to the rooster's proud strut about the barnyard, asserting his rule over hens and chicks. [Mid-1800s]

go off

1. Explode, detonate; also, make noise, sound, especially abruptly. For example, I heard the gun go off, or The sirens went off at noon. This expression developed in the late 1500s and gave rise about 1700 to the related go off half-cocked, now meaning "to act prematurely" but originally referring to the slipping of a gun's hammer so that the gun fires (goes off) unexpectedly.

2. Leave, depart, especially suddenly, as in Don't go off mad, or They went off without saying goodbye. [c. 1600]

3. Keep to the expected plan or course of events, succeed, as in The project went off smoothly. [Second half of 1700s]

4. Deteriorate in quality, as in This milk seems to have gone off. [Late 1600s]

5. Die. Shakespeare used this sense in Macbeth (5:9): "I would the friends we missed were safely arrived.-Some must go off."

6. Experience orgasm. D.H. Lawrence used this slangy sense in Lady Chatterley's Lover (1928): "You couldn't go off at the same time...." This usage is probably rare today. Also see get off, def. 8.

knock into a cocked hat

Debunk, render useless or unbelievable. For example, His findings knocked our theory into a cocked hat. This expression alludes to a style of hat with the brim turned up on three sides-the three-cornered (tricorne) hat worn by officers in the American Revolution-giving it a distorted look. [Early 1800s]

cock a

half-cocked

Prematurely. Like “flash in the pan,” “half-cocked” is a phrase that comes from old firearms. The firing mechanism of a flintlock pistol or musket could be set at full cock, or ready to be discharged, or half cock, which was the equivalent of having a safety on a revolver. A weapon that went off while half-cocked did so prematurely, just like someone who loses his temper without considering the facts or consequences of a situation. To act too soon, especially in a rash or impetuous fashion, is to go off half-cocked.

Excalibur includes the following with a Micro 335: Premium Dead-Zone Scope with one-inch rings, a four-bolt quiver with mounting bracket, a rope cocking aid and four Excalibur Quill bolts tipped with 150-grain field points.

Coming to a judgment of misconduct but not impairment, panel chair Polly Clarke said Mrs Cocking developed a better understanding of her responsibilities and later demonstrated assertiveness in contacting a consultant during a "jump call".

Instead, editors spoke of the nature of the crime of which Cocking stood accused--the violent deaths of two white women--and condemned, not those who had hanged their neighbor, but the dead man himself, for his failure to fulfill his role as protector of the "murdered ladies.

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